Jackrabbit: The Story of Clint Castleberry and the Improbable 1942 Georgia Tech Football Season

by Bill Chastain, Tony Barnhart (Foreword)

"He ran like a crazed jackrabbit," according to one awe-struck sportswriter. Clint Castleberry was already an Atlanta-area football sensation when he arrived at Georgia Tech in 1942, and in one meteoric college season he became a national sports hero as well. He was the first college freshman ever to be voted All-American. At least one Heisman Trophy was all but certain. Though weighing just 155 pounds, he seemed destined to become one of the greatest tailbacks in college football history.But then World War II intervened, and Castleberry became, instead, another young man whose destiny was cut short. His #19 is the only number ever retired in the illustrious history of Georgia Tech football.Bill Chastain weaves Clint Castleberry's story around other legends of Georgia Tech football--including John Heisman, William Alexander, and Bobby Dodd-to create a glorious portrait of a proud football tradition and America's Greatest Generation."One of the great "what-if" stories in college football history. The story of Clint Castleberry is really the story of our Greatest Generation."--from the foreword by Tony Barnhart, Mr. College Football and author of Southern Fried Football"Here's a great storyteller with an oversized story to tell. Clint Castleberry died 67 years ago. He lives in these pages."--Martin Fennelly, The Tampa Tribune"Bill Chastain does a great job of capturing this unique American hero."--Wes Durham, Director of Broadcasting, "Voice of the Yellow Jackets""The best football player you never heard of, who dashed across the gridiron for just one season, long ago."-- Frank Deford, Sports Illustrated and Hall of Fame sportswriter; NPR Morning Edition commentator; author of Everybody's All-American, Bliss Remembered, and Alex: The Life of a Child

206 pages, Paperback

First published December 15, 2011

About the author

Bill Chastain began his journalism career as a freelance writer shortly after graduating from Georgia Tech in 1979. Some of the more notable publications where his stories have appeared over the years include: Razor Magazine, Nation’s Business, SPORT Magazine, and Inside Sports. Chastain worked as a sports reporter for The St. Petersburg Times and The St. Petersburg Evening Independent before going to The Tampa Tribune in 1990, where he worked for twelve years as a columnist and sports reporter. While with the Tribune he also served as a correspondent for Sports Illustrated. Currently he covers Major League Baseball’s Tampa Bay Rays for MLB.com.

Reviews

[Delway Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the greatest "what if" stories in sports, that now after the passage of 65 years is all but forgotten. This is the story of Clint Castleberry, a one-of-a-kind athlete, who remains the only freshman football player to be voted an All-American as a freshman. It recounts the earliest days of the sport, its adjustments to the war, its early fixation in the southern culture, and of a far simpler & more naive world. It is a short read, and no literary heavy weight, but it recounts the facts of the young men who played and dreamed and then went off to war, many never making it home. This is a story reflected by a poem, "To an Athlete Dying Young."

[Tristram · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you enjoy football and incredible sports stories, this book is for you. This book illustrates the epitome of sacrifice and the setting aside of dreams and destiny to serve ones country in a war in which all gave some, and some gave all. Clint Castleberry was a marvel and we can only wonder what could have been. Read it.

[S Turano · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice, easy read. I enjoyed learning about Clint Castleberry and the eraly days of GT football from a well researched book.